Interview with Marc Bourgon of GREBER

What got you into music, and if you had not gotten into music what would you be doing today?

I was forced into music by my parents when I was around 5. They made me take piano lessons and I did that until I was around 11 or 12. At that point, I heard Nirvana and Ride the Lightning by Metallica and just lost my mind and wanted to do that on my own. I shudder to think about what I would be doing today if I hadn't found music. There have been some rough times in my life and music has always been the guiding light that I had to keep me moving straight. I'd probably be dead or in jail or something.

What do you like to do when you are not playing music and how does that influence your creativity?

I like to read and hang out with my girlfriend but that's about it. I spend so much time doing music that when I'm not I don't really know what to do with myself.

 How long has your band been around?

Greber has been around for 16 years and Steve and I have been playing in a band together for even longer than that. It's wild/time is a flat circle, you know?

Where are you based out of and how did that influence your music?

We live in Cambridge Ontario Canada. Normally I would say that where we live doesn't influence our music at all but over the past few years that has definitely changed. There's a scene that's bubbling up to the surface as of late and I think a lot of it has to do with the nofuneral records crew. Cambridge has always just been a place for us to lay our heads but as of late the scene is getting stronger and stronger and a lot of really amazing music is coming out of here.

How did you come up with the name of your band and what does it mean to you?

Honestly, the band name doesn't mean a damn thing. It was just some arbitrary street name that we thought sounded neutral enough that we could twist it into our own vile handle.

Tell me about your most memorable shows.

The most memorable show that I can think of was a basement we played in Kitchener Waterloo called the Doompalace. Our good friends Cerebral Scrub? played and it was just absolute mayhem. There was probably a total of 5 minutes during the set where we weren't in imminent danger from the crowd falling onto all of our stuff. I said it before and I'll say it again, if heaven does exist, my personal version of it would be that night looped in perpetuity forever.

What is your favorite venue to play at, and do you have any places you want to play that you have not already?

Collectively, our favourite venue to play would be the TurboHaus in Montreal Quebec. It's run by old road veterans and there is literally nothing that I can think of that would improve upon that place. Good vibe, good people, good stage and good sound. If you're not careful though Sergio will rip your underwear off your body. Consensually of course.

If you could play any show with any lineup, who would be on the ticket?

I would say a show with Amen, Dangers, Propagandhi and Silverchair would be our dream lineup to be a part of.

What is some advice that you would give to someone who is just getting into playing in a band and some advice that you would give to your younger self?

The advice that I would give to somebody starting a band today would be to be as fearless as possible. Take every creative risk and don't ever try to sound like anybody but yourself.  Adversely, with that being said, embrace your influences and never be afraid to steal ideas. Steal, not plagiarize. Your failure to become the creator that you idolize will be the success you find in becoming your own artistic entity.

If you could go back in time and give yourselves advice, what would it be?

Start singing sooner. I wish that I had curated my voice in a melodic fashion earlier on. Maybe it wouldn't be so destroyed from screaming all these years.

Of your songs which one means the most to you and why?

The Closer We Got which is the last song off our 2018 release Cemetery Preston always had a tender spot in my chest. It was written during a pretty low moment in my life and it still smokes me the same way every time we play it. Thankfully it's been a while since that's happened.

Which songs are your favorite to play and which get requested the most?

No one really requests our songs specifically although lately are good friend Luke from Hamilton requested an old song called These Roads off our second record.

What is the creative process for the band, and what inspires you to write your music?

I'm not too sure what inspires us to write, we just let it wash over us and go from there. Typically the creative process starts with me jotting down a few key ideas for a song's concept and then fleshing out some riffs that match the vibe of that. Once I have some loose ideas I'll bring them to the practice space and Steve and I will start to breathe life into the skeleton.

What kinds of messages do you like to get across in your music?

Mainly that you're not alone, you can do it, don't be afraid to be yourself and don't be afraid to die.

Do you ever have disagreements in your band, and how do you get past them?

We don't really but that is the product of us working through many upsets past. We've definitely hurt each other's feelings before but through being vulnerable, talking it through and having a genuine love for one another we have been able to navigate some pretty tough waters. I feel blessed every day to have Steve in my life and I truly hope that I die before he does.

What are your plans for the future, and do you have anything that you want to spotlight that is coming up?

We just released our fourth LP entitled Fright Without on September 9th and we have some shows coming up to support that. Thanks for the interview!

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